Hi MsMarion,

For the black insects (not sure what they might be) you can safely use Garden Safe soap concentrate. HD has it. It is fine to always keep some made up in a spray bottle, and use as often as you need it. Not toxic to pets/people, it is just a light soap.

Leafminers.... Bad news.. They are a terrible problem..

I am going to end up using systemics on all my citrus. That is what it has come down to, if I want pretty trees. I have plenty of Fertilome Bagworm, Borer and Leafminer spray, which I will give you to try. I simply do not have the time to spray every new growth flush, over and over, with it. With over 40 citrus, it is just not possible.

If you look at the citrus for sale now, you will probably notice a new tag-that shows they have been treated with Imidacloprid (same ingredient in Advantage). That is why nursery grown citrus have nice leaves. The systemic (made by Bayer) is not taken up well into flowers or fruit so it is safe to eat the fruit. The treatment lasts a year. I used the Bayer tree product for my pitiful Grapefruit tree, which is so stressed that it never even flowered this year. It now has new, perfect leaves appearing! It cost me $18 just to treat the one tree, since it has a big trunk caliper, and the dose is according to the size of the tree.

I need to find a source for Admire Pro. I'm using the tree drench, off-label, on my non-bearing trees.

Lisa

The little black bugs sound like spider mites and the webbing. To get rid of them just spray the tree as hard as you can with the hose without tearing the tree up.

P.S Spider mites dont like water so spraying the tree with water once in a while will keep them away.

John

A friend who is a Master Gardener told me the black bugs were pepper bugs and because the tree is fruiting I should insectidal (sp?) soap. I've searched the net for info but can't find any. I'll spray when I get home from work. Thanks for the support.
Marion

" because the tree is fruiting I should insectidal (sp?) soap. "

Marion, that is the Garden Safe product I mentioned. Home Depot has it.

I use lots of it, very safe and not too expensive.

Or, liquid dish soap with water will also suffocate insects. A couple of squirts in a spray bottle filled with water should do the trick. Do not spray in the heat of the day, evening is the best time.

Lisa

Spray with a summer dose of dormant oil. Add some Dawn dishwashing liquid(very cheap insecticidal soap I might add.)

Here is a link that might be useful: mrtexas

Leaves are dry, curled and falling. Not all but about 15-20% of them. It is about six 1/2 feet high and was bought about 3 weeks ago. Help.